Francis Lui

On this day 12 months ago, jockey Vincent Ho guided Southern Legend (Aus) (Not A Single Doubt {Aus}) to an upset victory in the FWD Champions Mile, his first Group 1 score some 10 years removed from being named the champion apprentice rider in Hong Kong and about a month after throwing Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) across the line first in the prestigious BMW Hong Kong Derby. Sunday's FWD Champions Day program at Sha Tin, attended by the biggest on-track crowd since COVID-19 took hold last year, marked a...

Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) had to channel his inner Usain Bolt in Sunday's G1 Stewards' Cup at Sha Tin, as the 5-year-old sprinted his final half-mile in a mind-boggling :44.18 and final 400 metres in a staggering :21.80 to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. His record now stands at 16 starts for 15 wins and his 12th consecutive score draws him ever closer to the local record of 17 straight held by the legendary Silent Witness (Aus). Very little went according to script. With Zac Purton steering,...

Exiting an imperious victory in the G1 Longines Hong Kong Mile Dec. 13, Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) goes in search of his 12th consecutive victory and 15th from 16 starts overall when he takes on a field of mostly familiar faces in Sunday's G1 Stewards' Cup at Sha Tin Racecourse. Winner of seven straight during the 2019/2020 season, including a sweep of the 4-year-old Classics, the Queensland-bred gelding has yet to be tested in four runs this term and his Hong Kong Mile success came at the expense of...

History tells us that when one darling of the Hong Kong turf fades into the sunlight, almost invariably--though not to be taken for granted--another one appears. Fairy King Prawn (Aus) was the marquee Hong Kong galloper at the turn of the century and it wasn't long after that Silent Witness (Aus) took the jurisdiction by storm, embarking on a 17-race winning streak that included back-to-back runnings of the G1 Hong Kong Sprint in 2003-2004. A Derby win often paves the path to Hong Kong super-stardom, and such was the case...

Barree Stable's Singapore-based Inferno (Aus) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) has been scratched from Sunday's G1 Longines Hong Kong Sprint at Sha Tin after being found to be lame in his left front leg by Hong Kong Jockey Club veterinarians Tuesday. Very little went as planned for Inferno on his trip over to Hong Kong. The air conditioning in the horse float that transported Inferno from Kranji Racecourse to Changi Airport about 30 minutes away broke down and the horse was subjected to the heat for three hours. He then had...

Exultant (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) was named 2019/2020 Horse of the Year in Hong Kong Thursday in a virtual ceremony, as stricter social distancing protocols within the context of a third wave of coronavirus in the region put pay to the scheduled live proceedings. Bred by Ballygallon Stud, Exultant won four of his seven trips to the post during the season, calling on all his class and stamina for victories in the G1 FWD Queen Elizabeth II Cup (2000m) and a successful defence of his title in the G1 Standard Chartered...

Stanley Chan Ka Leung's Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) will not contest the G1 FWD QEII Cup Apr. 26, according trainer Francis Lui Wednesday. The winner of 10 of 11 career starts, the bay won his seven latest trips to post, including the Mar. 22 BMW Hong Kong Derby at Sha Tin. "He's achieved a lot this season and we feel he needs a rest now to refresh his mind and let him develop," said Lui. "He'll have a summer break and then we'll prepare him for next season." Following...

Sent off as the 11-2 fourth choice in a field of six for Sunday's Yau Ma Tei Plate, the first griffin race of the year in Hong Kong, Sunny Star (Flatter) flopped out of the gates, but came with a stinging rally inside the final 200 meters to open his account at first asking, defeating 6-5 favorite Smiling Face (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) by 2 1/4 lengths. Chancheng Prince (Carpe Diem) raced prominently throughout and stuck on gamely for third. Sunny Star hopped in the air just as the gates flew...

A pair of American-bred 3-year-olds are among a field of six entered for Sunday's Yau Ma Tei Plate, the season's first race restricted to 'griffins' going the 1000-meter trip down the straight course at Sha Tin Racecourse. A griffin is defined as a 2-year-old or 3-year-old horse which has been imported into Hong Kong without having raced previously. The better-fancied of the two colts, each trained by second-leading and BMW Hong Kong Derby-winning conditioner Francis Lui, is Sunny Star (Flatter), who was trading overnight as the 19-5 third choice. Bred...

Coronavirus has had a major affect on horse racing all across the globe, forcing the temporary abandonment of racing in a handful of prominent racing states in America, as well as Britain, France, hard-hit Italy and South Korea, while other places soldier on in front of empty grandstands. Hong Kong lies roughly 700 miles due south of Wuhan, the widely accepted epicentre of the virus's outbreak, but owing to aggressive action by the government and a populace that adhered strictly to preventive measures, racing has been allowed to continue in...

by Alan Carasso Neither a minor temperature nor Sunday's 1800-metre trip proved a task too tall for the talented Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro), who was the recipient of a thinking-man's ride from the up-and-coming Vincent Ho and showed his customary electric turn of foot to add the Hong Kong Classic Cup to his prior victory in the Hong Kong Classic Mile. Now just once-beaten in 10 trips to the races, Golden Sixty can join the late Rapper Dragon (Aus) (Street Boss) as the only horses in history to sweep...

A field of 10 4-year-olds bred in either hemisphere line up for Sunday's HK$10-million Hong Kong Classic Cup (1800m), a field in which the top-rated galloper has some questions to answer and is likely to play second fiddle--at least from a pari-mutuel standpoint-to a stable companion. Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro) is rated on 112 entering this middle leg of the 4YO Classic series, having posted eight wins from his nine trips to the post to date. He is perfect in five runs this season, including a defeat of more...